away rotations in july??

[wanderlustin]

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hi all, long time reader, first time poster. i'm a 3rd year currently waffling back and forth between EM and surgery, though i haven't yet had my EM rotation (June). setting up electives right now and i know i want to do aways, but i'm not sure of the best time. a 4th year discouraged me from doing one in July, because of the new interns starting around that time and not getting much hands on experience. however, i think it would be beneficial to make an impression on a program i may want to be at and also to prepare for future aways at more desirable programs would be a plus. what are your thoughts? is it better to just altogether wait till august?

 

[OncoticPressure]

hi all, long time reader, first time poster. i'm a 3rd year currently waffling back and forth between EM and surgery, though i haven't yet had my EM rotation (June). setting up electives right now and i know i want to do aways, but i'm not sure of the best time. a 4th year discouraged me from doing one in July, because of the new interns starting around that time and not getting much hands on experience. however, i think it would be beneficial to make an impression on a program i may want to be at and also to prepare for future aways at more desirable programs would be a plus. what are your thoughts? is it better to just altogether wait till august?

July, August and September are the ideal months. July should not be an issue. The EM interns will likely not be in the ED or if they are they likely have reduced shifts as it is an "orientation month".

 

[onomatopoeia09]

I did mine in July and it was great. Interns weren't working too much since it was orientation and we attended all their lectures. This was great educationally and also to get to know them and the program better. It definitely didn't take anything away from my experience, if anything it added to it.

 

[caliboy007]

I did mine in July and it was great. Interns weren't working too much since it was orientation and we attended all their lectures. This was great educationally and also to get to know them and the program better. It definitely didn't take anything away from my experience, if anything it added to it.

Agree 100%. Doing EM rotation in July will also mean your SLOR may get done earlier and will be ready when MSPE comes out 🙂

 

[jbar]

I had a great experience doing the rotation in July because there were a bunch of workshops for the interns that I got to go to (Ultrasound, anatomy lab for chest tubes, slit lamp etc) And like others have said, you get good teaching because the interns are getting taught. Also I don't think there is a big difference in how gung ho the interns are between July and August. Comparing July to January is a bigger difference in your experience, but clearly January is too late for a SLOR.

 

[Big mommas baby]

EM is becoming more competitive, make sure you have taken Step 2CK or you have a plan to study, take the exam and have results back sooner than later. Speaking from personal experience.

 

[87DO15]

I know this isn't only related to EM, but after which month would an away rotation be less than worthwhile? I saw that ERAS opens on Sep. 1, so would doing aways in October and beyond be a fruitless endeavor?

(Also, for EM, should all 3-4 letters come from EM attendings at residency locations, or are community physicians okay for 1-2 of them? Thanks!)

 

[DrVanNostran]

I know this isn't only related to EM, but after which month would an away rotation be less than worthwhile? I saw that ERAS opens on Sep. 1, so would doing aways in October and beyond be a fruitless endeavor?

(Also, for EM, should all 3-4 letters come from EM attendings at residency locations, or are community physicians okay for 1-2 of them? Thanks!)

An away in October or November may serve as a one month interview at a desirable program. If you are done with step 2 and have the stress of applying lifted off you, it might be an ideal time to rotate at a program you really like.

 

[EM2BE]

Depends on how many months you have available. Some programs don't have any interns in the ER in July, so you may do better that month than when they first come in (and get all procedures, attention, etc).

 

[wanderlustin]

EM is becoming more competitive, make sure you have taken Step 2CK or you have a plan to study, take the exam and have results back sooner than later. Speaking from personal experience.

yeah, i'm getting nervous about that. planning to take CK at the end of may so i have it out of the way and results back by eras submission time. do you know if it's true that EM programs almost value step 2CK scores more than step 1?

and thanks everyone. this is very encouraging. i'm actually planning to do aways july, august, and september.

 

[Big mommas baby]

yeah, i'm getting nervous about that. planning to take CK at the end of may so i have it out of the way and results back by eras submission time. do you know if it's true that EM programs almost value step 2CK scores more than step 1?

and thanks everyone. this is very encouraging. i'm actually planning to do aways july, august, and september.

Please note I am not a PD, nor do I play one on television.
Step 1 is more important, because that is how some programs sieve applications. When it comes to inviting a student for an interview, I feel they choose students who have completed their Step 2CK. Emergency interview invites come out pretty late, (I think my first invites came in Oct or maybe November) so you have plenty of time to take your Step during the fall semester.

 

[Masterdoc]

Please note I am not a PD, nor do I play one on television.
Step 1 is more important, because that is how some programs sieve applications. When it comes to inviting a student for an interview, I feel they choose students who have completed their Step 2CK. Emergency interview invites come out pretty late, (I think my first invites came in Oct or maybe November) so you have plenty of time to take your Step during the fall semester.

I plan on doing my last away in September and taking step 2 end of Oct. Is that too late? My Boards scores are avg but I am not applying to the big name programs.

 

[Big mommas baby]

I plan on doing my last away in September and taking step 2 end of Oct. Is that too late? My Boards scores are avg but I am not applying to the big name programs.

First, make sure you are ready to take the exam. You dont wan't to put yourself in a situation that you don't surpass your Step 1 score. I took my exam the beginning of Nov and by that time my classmates had gotten a boatload of invites.

The end of October doesn't sound bad, but you will get your scores back by the middle of November. There is a chance you could miss out on some interview invites. Check the schedule of your aways, I was working 3 or 4 days a week, and could have taken the extra time I had to study, rather than slack off.